Health care · Metro area · California
Medical and dental practices in the Merced, CA metro area
How the Merced, CA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #37 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 383
- 48 chain locations (13%)
- Official establishments
- 264
- +12.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $101.2M
- On medical and dental services · $1,176 a household
- Spending per listing
- $264K
- 73% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 44.5
- 47% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 297,260
- +5.1% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in the Merced metro area
The site report maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Merced metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Merced metro area scores 73 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for medical and dental practices, ranking #37 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 25 scored metro areas based in California. That puts it in the top 10% of metro areas for medical and dental practices.
Households in the Merced metro area spend about $101.2M a year on medical and dental services, or $1,176 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That is about $264K of household spending for each practice on map listings, 73% above the U.S. figure of $152K.
The Merced metro area has 383 medical and dental practices on map listings as of September 2026. 48 of them (13%) are chain locations, against 11% across the U.S. That comes to 44.5 for every 10,000 households, 47% below the U.S. rate of 84.5.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Merced metro area was 264 in 2023, up 12.3% from 2019. That is one for every 326 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $598K have gone to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Merced metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Merced metro area grew 5.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Merced metro area compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the medical and dental practices counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Merced metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 44.5 | 88.3 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $264K | $166K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 326 | 199 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.3% | +2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.1% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,176 | $1,464 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $65,510 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 73 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 264+12.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,038
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $130.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 80Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 38348 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 663The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $598K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Merced metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Merced metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 297,260+5.1% since 2020
- Households
- 86,055
- Median age
- 32.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 54%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,938 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 150
- Median household income
- $65,510+22.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $87,781
- Median home value
- $391,800
- Jobs located here
- 77,775
- Daytime population
- 255,124Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Merced metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the medical and dental practices on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Merced metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDoctors, dentists and clinics across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in California, with the Merced metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Stockton-Lodi, CA | 78 | 1,341 | 54.7 | $253K | +5.5% | #20 of 387 |
| 2Vallejo, CA | 76 | 841 | 53.4 | $271K | +0.6% | #28 of 387 |
| 3Yuba City, CA | 74 | 369 | 59.6 | $214K | +3.3% | #34 of 387 |
| 4Merced, CA | 73 | 383 | 44.5 | $264K | +5.1% | #37 of 387 |
| 5Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 68 | 6,153 | 69.8 | $205K | +3.2% | #63 of 387 |
| 6El Centro, CA | 63 | 266 | 53.6 | $208K | +1.1% | #90 of 387 |
| 7Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 62 | 1,798 | 63.1 | $194K | +2.3% | #100 of 387 |
| 8Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 60 | 10,360 | 71.4 | $191K | +3.5% | #110 of 387 |
| 9Visalia, CA | 59 | 781 | 54.5 | $224K | +2.4% | #115 of 387 |
| 10Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 59 | 1,496 | 78.3 | $191K | −0.4% | #116 of 387 |
Other business types in the Merced metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics73
- Dentists and orthodontists51
- Primary care and pediatrics66
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics
- Chiropractors78
- Physical therapy77
- Optometrists and eye care72
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in the Merced, CA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 383 medical and dental practices in the Merced metro area. 48 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 264 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, up 12.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 80 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Merced, CA metro area spend on medical and dental services?
About $101.2M a year, or $1,176 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 383 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $264K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 86,055 households in the Merced metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Merced, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
The Merced metro area has 44.5 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 47% below the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $264K, 73% above the U.S. figure of $152K. At the U.S. ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, the Merced metro area would have about 663, against 383 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 326 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Merced, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Merced metro area at 297,260 people in 2025, up 5.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 86,055 households. The median household income in the Merced metro area is $65,510 a year, 19% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.1% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Merced metro area scores 73 for medical and dental practices (upper middle), #37 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Merced metro area. It maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for medical and dental practices · All 56 business types in the Merced metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Merced metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Merced metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.